A OO Love After Officially Announcing with the Best Actress - Chapter 7

Arriving at the makeup room, Lin Ke found that the makeup artist had been temporarily pulled away to work on the background actors. She simply decided to change into her costume first—done in five minutes—and stood before the vanity mirror, lingering over her naturally pale skin.

Lu Tu hung up the phone: “Stop staring. I’ve notified the stylist; they’ll be back in a moment. If you have this much free time, use it to focus on your script.”

The script was her source of dread. Lin Ke picked it up and reviewed today’s two scenes from beginning to end once more.

Today included a scene opposite Lin Bingran and a group scene. She wasn’t worried about the group scene, but the one-on-one with Lin Bingran made her anxious.

The stylist returned, and Lin Bingran entered right behind them.

Lin Ke tucked her script away and gave a sweet shout: “Teacher Lin, morning! Have you had breakfast?”

Lin Bingran gave a hum and responded with two words: “Xiao Lin.”

Lin Ke couldn’t help but grumble internally: Some Best Actresses look glorious in public but sneak food in private. Would saying two more words make her spit out last night’s dumplings?

Lin Ke smiled, but her expression turned “colorful” when she noticed the stylist prioritized Lin Bingran’s makeup first.

She buried her head, trying hard to immerse herself in the script and stop her mind from wandering.

Lu Tu stepped out for a bit and returned with a cup of tea, giving her a look that only the two of them understood.

—Drink tea, it clears the “fire” (irritability).

Lin Ke took a sip; it was bitter and astringent. It certainly cleared her irritability, but she couldn’t help stealing glances at Lin Bingran.

The makeup artist stood on Lin Bingran’s right, while Guo Rongrong stood on her left with the schedule. “After makeup, you have an interview next door. Once that’s done, it’ll be about time to see the fans. They’re on their way and should arrive around ten o’clock. You’ll chat for about ten minutes. These are the drafts from the two media outlets; take a look first…”

Lin Bingran hummed in agreement, lifting her eyes to cooperate with the artist, catching Lin Ke’s peeking through the mirror.

A cup of tea sat neglected in front of the makeup mirror, seemingly with only a shallow sip taken. Lin Bingran said: “Distribute the tea leaves we brought to the fans. Do not accept gifts.”

Guo Rongrong nodded: “Anything else?”

Lin Bingran said: “It’s hot. Give some to everyone in the crew as well.”

As Guo Rongrong went to handle the task, the makeup artist smiled and thanked her: “Thank you, Teacher Lin.”

The back of the chair was pushed gently. Lin Ke looked up and turned her head to Lin Bingran: “Thank you, Teacher Lin.”

Lin Bingran flipped through the interview draft and said: “You’re welcome. You’re a fan too. I promised to give you some tea yesterday; I’ll have my assistant deliver it to your hotel later.”

Lin Ke kept smiling, though her molars were grinding in pain.

Lin Bingran left for her interview after finishing her makeup. Only then did the stylist attend to Lin Ke. Lin Ke needed dark foundation and freckles, which took more time. As soon as she was done, she rushed to the filming location.

In the drama, Chu Feng was born in the countryside. Her parents died early, leaving only her and her elder sister. The two sisters depended on each other, and it hadn’t been easy for the sister to raise her to age sixteen.

On set, Shen Feng had everything ready. A large crane arm was suspended to first film a shot of Chu Feng running through the fields.

School ended early today, and Chu Feng was hungry, thinking about going home to eat. After class, she bolted out of the classroom like lightning, nearly knocking a teacher over. The cafeteria grandma kindly told her to slow down.

Leaping across a meter-wide moat, she ran out of the town, followed by a cut to an empty shot of the blue sky and white clouds.

She reappeared on the ridges of the rural fields. The town was adjacent to the countryside, and on both sides of the fields were villagers carrying shoulder poles to fertilize the crops.

A middle-aged man called out to Chu Feng: “Xiao Feng! Your family’s ducks escaped the pen and are eating the seedlings in the field! I’ve shooed them home for you!”

Chu Feng nodded quickly, looking back as she ran. The wind puffed out her pant legs, and her smile carried the typical innocence of a country child. “Thanks, Uncle! I’ll treat you to salted duck eggs once they’re pickled!”

“Aye, alright!”

Chu Feng grinned, her straight bangs and chin-length hair flying wildly in the wind. She was like a small beast of the wilderness, moving freely through the ridges and wheat fields.

One shot took until nearly noon. Lin Ke’s expressions were appropriate, but various accidents kept happening while she ran.

She accidentally slipped into the field, or ran too fast during a close-up, making it impossible for the camera operator to keep up while carrying the equipment.

A single long shot took two hours; resetting the coordination each time took significant time.

During the break, Lu Tu handed Lin Ke a sweat-wiping tissue. The sound of car horns echoed in the distance as three medium-sized business vans drove close, their bodies covered in Lin Bingran’s posters. The support vehicles and fans had arrived.

“How extravagant!”

Someone cheered and asked Shen Feng: “Director, is this scene done? If it is, everyone’s going to go eat cake!”

Shen Feng was at the monitor reviewing the playback. Confirming the last frame was perfect, she picked up the intercom: “Alright, one hour break. Go get your perks from Teacher Lin!”

Non-essential personnel dispersed, while the rest moved the machines and cleared the equipment.

Lin Bingran’s fan support would definitely bring food and drinks for the crew—and even useful items if they were being generous.

Those who could go went in person to collect their perks; those who couldn’t asked colleagues to bring a portion back.

Lin Ke scratched her head. Her body was still stained with mud from her fall. She wasn’t sure if she should go.

The interview was finally nearing its end. Guo Rongrong knocked on the door: “Sister, the fans are here.”

Lin Bingran nodded, stood up to shake hands with the media personnel, and smiled: “The fans are visiting. It’s too hot to keep them waiting. Let’s stop here for today.”

The person interviewing Lin Bingran was a male Omega. His face turned red just looking at her smile; he hadn’t expected Lin Bingran to be so down-to-earth. He had sneaked in two personal questions midway, and she hadn’t gotten angry.

“Of… of course, you go ahead,” the male Omega stammered after the business was done. “Teacher Lin, can we take a photo together? I’m a fan of your films; could I have an autograph?”

Lin Bingran smiled: “Certainly.”

The media team of five or six people took photos and got signatures one by one, wasting another ten-plus minutes.

Lin Bingran went straight to the makeup room. Guo Rongrong helped her change. She had been wearing her costume earlier; the interview was text-only for an article and magazine, so it didn’t matter if it didn’t involve video, but she would definitely be photographed when meeting fans.

Actors must keep their styling confidential to prevent accidental spoilers.

After fixing her hair and clothes, Lin Bingran stood before the mirror and gulped down a large glass of tea.

Guo Rongrong comforted her: “Sister, don’t be nervous. It’s been so many years. The ones coming today are all old fans; nothing will happen.”

Lin Bingran lowered her eyes, her palms covered in sweat. She handed the cup to Guo Rongrong and said: “I know. Let’s go.”

The business vans were parked outside the set. A group of fans was moving items at the water town entrance, setting up the scene, laying out cakes and cold drinks, and chatting busily with support signs. They told the crew members to take good care of their idol.

Lin Bingran furrowed her brows as she walked from the makeup room to the town exit. The entrance was a newly renovated facade by the government, ancient and grand. For the film, the crew had added intentional aging marks. The sun cast a shadow across the gate.

Lin Bingran paused in this darkness, straightened herself up, put on a smile, and walked out to greet her fans.

“Ah!!!!”

“Ranran!!!!”

“The sun is so hot, the fans are really dedicated. Three vans, several cars, tsk tsk.” Lin Ke held a plate of cake, half of the cream being scooped away by Lu Tu. “Damn, that’s enough!”

“Can you skip lunch after eating this piece of cake?” Lu Tu asked. “Did you finish metabolizing all those calories from last night?”

Lin Ke scoffed: “Definitely not.”

Lu Tu snorted, stole half of Lin Ke’s cake to eat happily with Xiao Wang, and complained about the earlier topic: “How many years has it been since Lin Bingran accepted fan support? This time it’s a favor for Director Shen. It’s no surprise the spectacle is so big. If you want to reach this level, your ancestral grave would practically have to catch fire.”

Lin Ke didn’t speak. She lowered her head and ducked into the shadows; the sun was too intense.

Lu Tu saw this and immediately teased her: “Don’t hide. It doesn’t matter if you’re photographed. In this mess, even your own mother wouldn’t recognize you.”

Lin Ke fed herself a large bite of cake. her face was dark and dotted with dried mud. She had fallen again when she came back to grab the cake, but fortunately, her assistant Xiao Wang had already picked it up for her.

After eating, Lu Tu clapped her hands to tell Lin Ke to go back and prepare for the next scene.

The cake was fragrant and sweet. Lin Ke cherished it, swallowing slowly. “I haven’t finished yet. The set is empty; who’s going to run lines with me?”

Lu Tu left grumbling that she wasn’t hardworking enough, leaving Xiao Wang behind to accompany Lin Ke.

Xiao Wang, an Alpha responsible for the heavy lifting in Lin Ke’s life, comforted her: “Teacher Xiao Lin, you’re very hardworking. I see your script is already worn out from flipping.”

Lin Ke was eating the cake, only one bite left. She scraped the fork against the plate and said: “I’m thirsty. Please go get some water for me.”

Xiao Wang suspected nothing and ran to get water.

Lin Ke refocused her gaze on the eight-tier cake outside that hadn’t been fully distributed yet.

Lin Bingran chatted and laughed with her old fans naturally. The group was less than ten people, many of whom had followed her since her debut. Beyond being fans, they shared a level of friendship.

“Sister, why is only Rongrong with you? Why don’t you have two more assistants?”

Lin Bingran smiled, but before she could speak, Guo Rongrong started acting aggrieved.

Guo Rongrong: “Exactly! I have to do everything. I’m busy enough to die!”

The fans laughed and chimed in: “Sister Rongrong, we prepared a gift for you. Now that you’ve accepted it, don’t restrict Sister Ranran’s snacks anymore!”

“This is too much expense,” Lin Bingran laughed helplessly, looking at the setup at the town entrance. “Only a few people came, yet the setup rivals a full-scale fan club.”

An old fan said: “We finally got a chance to do this for you; it’s everyone’s heartfelt wish.”

Lin Bingran then asked: “How much money was crowdfunded? I’ll have Rongrong refund you later.”

The group shook their heads and refused all at once. “Don’t worry, it’s not much. We all have jobs and didn’t take money from minors. The bulk was paid by working adults over twenty-five.”

Lin Bingran disagreed, insisting on returning the money and telling Guo Rongrong to catalog the gifts.

Food and drinks were small expenses; the gifts for the entire crew were the major part.

Every woman received a four-digit skincare set, and every man received a name-brand razor, also four digits. There were dozens of people in the crew, plus the actors; the gifts for actors were likely even more sophisticated.

Lin Bingran wanted to refund them, but the fans wouldn’t have it. Crew members continued to come by to get cake and gifts.

The scene was noisy, and no one noticed a shadow quietly approaching.

Guo Rongrong came back midway. They had only planned to chat with the fans for ten minutes, but Lin Bingran had been chatting for nearly half an hour. She said: “We need to prepare for the scene soon. Let’s take the group photo.”

The fans didn’t want to delay her filming and began organizing for the photo.

Once lined up, Lin Bingran, surrounded by her fans, emerged from the crowd. She stood at the back and smiled. The noisy environment gradually grew quiet as the crew photographer prepared to take the shot.

“One.”

“Two.”

Everyone was prepared to shout “Eggplant (Cheese),” when the person standing to Lin Bingran’s bottom right suddenly lunged. “Lin Bingran—”

Another roar was even louder, a sweet voice cracking with the effort: “Lin Bingran!”

The camera frame froze at the moment Lin Bingran was tackled. After a split second of shock, the whole place erupted into chaos!

Lin Bingran only felt the world spin. Her ears were nearly deafened by the shouting, and her back hurt from the fall. Someone was pinning her down and had been kicked twice.

“Sister!”

“Quick, quick, quick!”

“Security—”

The scene was in total chaos. The person on top of Lin Ke was grabbed by the arms and dragged away. The attacker was gagged before they could speak. The scene was messier than before. Lin Ke was helped up, then pushed out of the crowd by Lin Bingran’s fans.

The cake had fallen to the ground. No one noticed her. Lin Ke endured the pain in her shoulder, patted her pant legs, and quickly left the scene. Passing the cake table, she didn’t forget to swipe another piece.

The rescue was an accidental act of impulse; as for the rest, it was none of her business.

Lin Bingran’s mind was in a fog as she was pushed by the crowd. Looking around, she was protected by Guo Rongrong’s body.